Thursday's New England Patriots Links 8/2
Following last night's season ticket only event, here's a quick rundown of today's stories:
BOSTON HERALD
Jesse Holley Uses Inspiration - Jeff Howe
Howe has a good article this morning on wide receiver Jesse Holley, who Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin dragged out of a pair of part-time jobs and helped him earn an invitation to training camp with the Cowboys.
NOTEBOOK: Michael Irvin Pushes Bill to Change Trophy - Jeff Howe
Howe files his "notebook" which leads off with the fact Irvin recently said he believes that Bill Belichick's name belongs alongside Vince Lombardi on the Super Bowl championship trophy.
Danny Woodhead now cast as veteran - Mark Daniels
Daniels writes that as Danny Woodhead takes a look around the practice fields, for the first time in his NFL career he's the guy with the most experience out there.
BOSTON GLOBE
Chad Johnson: 'It feels good to be able to breathe again' - Gary Dzen
Dzen has an entry highlighting some comments from former Patriot Chad Johnson, who told the Palm Beach Post that being in New England taught him how to "shut the [expletive] up for a year" - among other things.
Chandler Jones is having strong camp for the Patriots - Amalie Benjamin
Benjamin has an article spotlighting rookie Chandler Jones, who she writes while initial doubts centered mostly around his strength, he's looked strong so far this training camp.
Josh McDaniels has been given a loaded Patriots offense - Greg Bedard
Bedard has an interesting take on the fact that Josh McDaniels has been given a strong group to work with compared to what former coordinator Bill O'Brien had. Bedard points out that despite the success the team had after O'Brien adjusted on the fly following the trade of Randy Moss in 2010, when the team went into an offensive lull in 2011, O'Brien found himself being ripped on local airwaves.
NOTEBOOK: Scuffles highlight Patriots Practice Session - Shalise Manza Young
Manza Young files her "notebook" for this morning, which leads off with the scuffles from last night but she also notes in another portion of the report that Vince Wilfork - the most tenured member of the Patriots' defensive line - has had just one position coach during his career: Pepper Johnson.
ESPN BOSTON
Lombardi's take on Patriots - Field Yates
Yates has excerpts from the interview on WEEI this morning where NFL Analyst Mike Lombardi talked about the upcoming Patriots season.
Former Pats in new places - Field Yates
Field Yates looks at former Patriots BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Mark Anderson, and Chad Johnson in this entry.
CSNNE
Arrington: It's a time to beat up on eachother - Mary Paoletti
Paoletti has a good piece on Kyle Arrington, who talked about the fact that last night's scuffles are a result of "what happens when we put on full pads".
ATTLEBORO SUN CHRONICLE
Nothing Special Going on At Gillette - Mark Farinella
Farinella writes that Bill Belichick told media members that last night's practice wasn't "special", it was just "something for ticket holders". From there Farinella paints the picture of the scene that drew 22,633 fans to Gillette Stadium Wednesday night.
WORCESTER TELEGRAM
DUI Death Transformed Donte' Stallworth - Rich Garven
Garven has a good feature on wide receiver Donte' Stallworth, who feels fortunate to still be doing what he loves doing with his new football team.
WEEI
Rookie Chandler Jones Delivers Another Impressive Performance - Christopher Price
After spending most of the first week of training camp out of the spotlight, Price writes that Chandler Jones hit the big stage in front of fans Wednesday night.
When it comes to Patriots' new and improved defense, don't forget about Ras-I Dowling - DJ Bean
DJ Bean has an article this morning on New England's defense and writes that "one of the most intriguing additions to the Patriots defense isn't even new".
WEDNESDAY NIGHT PRACTICE NOTES
Patriots show some fight during practice at Gillette Stadium - Dan Duggan - Boston Herald
Duggan writes that last night's session was spirited and included a "dust-up" between Nate Solder and Brandon Spikes and involved a number of other players after Solder took an extra shot at him down on the goal lline during an 11-on-11 drill.
Brandon Spikes' injury, several fights highlight Patriots' sixth practice of camp - Jeff Howe - Boston Herald
Howe has his report from last night's session, which included an injury scare after Spikes walked off the field with a trainer during Wednesday night's practice, but fortunately he later returned.
Scuffle highlights night practice - Mike Reiss
Reiss talks about last night's scuffle on the field between Solder and Spikes, which he felt looked like a "baseball-type bench-clearing brawl". Reiss notes that Dan Koppen was at the heart of two other dust-ups.
Bed check: Wrapping Up Day 7 - Mike Reiss - ESPN Boston
Reiss has another wrap up from last night and has a lot of other notes, including the fact that despite the fact Brandon Lloyd missed last night's session, but that it shouldn't be a cause for alarm.
Patriots practice report for Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium - Greg Bedard - Boston Globe
Bedard files his report from last night, and highlights a huge catch from Aaron Hernandez, who caught a pass from Brian Hoyer that looked "impossible" against James Ihedigbo and Josh Barrett.
Camp Observations: Day 7 - Field Yates & Mike Rodak - ESPN BOSTON
Yates and Rodak have some observations from Wednesday night, including the fact that Stevan Ridley looked very decisive during the session.
Ten Things We Learned From Day 6 of Patriots Training Camp - Christopher Price - WEEI
Price has a great entry with his "ten things", including the fact Ras-I Dowling and Matthew Slater had a very competitive match-up last night.
